Bell, who was also charged with DUI, has paid his own way to Philadelphia to join the team, so apparently he’s going to get something for his money. Blount was on the team charter.

The move to play them seems dicey in light of potential punishment, but the Steelers also have to pick a roster after tonight’s game, and having their regular runners in there will give them a better chance to evaluate the rest of the offense.

Everyone deserves a second chance. Let them play and let them serve the punishment when it is decided on. Then hammer them if they do it again.
That’s the opinion of this guy who has been a Steelers fan for over 40 years.

I don’t understand why the decision to play them is dicey. Gordon’s punishment looms and he played into the 4th Quarter the other night. There are a ton of other players facing suspensions that play preseason games.

So glad the Ravens have a true #1 starting running back, the great Ray Rice. Steelers have two pot smokers that would ride the bench if they played for another team. Great time to be a Ravens fan. Cheers!

I was gonna play the eagles in the preseason, but then I got high. I was gonna score a TD on them but then I got high. Now I’m on the bench and I know why, because I got high, because I got high, because I got hiiiiiiigh.

Preseason games don’t mean too much, although this 3rd one is arguably the one that means the most for the regulars. If the team, or league for that matter, is going to punish them, it’ll be with regular season games. Considering the pace the NFL usually takes, it’ll probably be next season after any court stuff finishes up. First offenses aren’t usually suspensions anyways, just game fines. For now, it’s business as usual.

At least the two potheads will have some motivation for running hard this year. Now they’ll be living in a fishbowl – they’ll either survive or end up like Santonio Holmes wasting his talent and washed up.

abninf says:Aug 21, 2014 12:57 PM

I presume they aren’t going to be drug tested, when they will obviously fail, because of the lovely union.

troy43mvp says:Aug 21, 2014 12:59 PM

It’s a preseason game. It’s to evaluate the rest of the team. They were smoking weed come on already, it’s not like they close fist punched a 105 lb. woman in the face and the coach’s,Owner,G.M. and the fans cheered it afterwards or said that they were “proud” of the person.

themeccalambeaufield says:Aug 21, 2014 12:59 PM

Im so glad the 13x Champs the Packers took the class rb of the draft last year in rookie of the year Lacy. More ability and obviously more brains than Bell.

So, there’s some doubt whether Blount or Bell or both will might make the team that it’s vital they play in a preseason game? What a ridiculous excuse. Tomlin has zero control of his players.

mrlaloosh says:Aug 21, 2014 1:03 PM

It always amazes me when fans of the team the players are on always defend them. If another team they would be blasting them. The IQ of the posters on this site has to be among the lowest ever recorded.

Once back when I was young and silly, I myself sampled the herbs then drove. I know many of you are stupified by that admission, but if you’re a ratbird fan, you’re probably used to that feeling already. I had but 5 miles to go, yet it involved driving on a major road, albeit at 3am. I was petrified. It was my first time with the ganj, I’d no prior experience with it much less driving under it.

My foggy brain was running at 1000 miles an hour as I pulled onto the empty street. Speed limit is 45, so don’t speed! Drive straight! Don’t speed! Stay between the lines! Don’t slouch at the wheel! Don’t speed! Don’t weave! Watch out for cops! Watch out for animals in the road! Don’t speed! Drive straight! Watch out for cops! Check the speedometer to make sure you’re not speeding…

Yeah Bob, blame the coach for grown men’s actions outside of the workplace.
There’s nothing to indicate that there won’t be punishment down the road. Perhaps Tomlin should set his game preparation aside less than 24 hours leading up to the game to review their incident and dole out punishment. Coach has a job to do. smh

harrisonhits2 says:Aug 21, 2014 1:12 PM

Good, maybe if the teams stop punishing players for smoking it will send a message to the league.

One of these days soon a player is going to get a medical marijuana card and challenge the league on this.

Bob, seriously? It’s the preseason. Any player that gets suspended still gets to play in the preseason. If this was the regular or post season it would be another issue of them playing. I guess it’s a change of pace from your typical Ben bashing. The way Blount has been running I wouldn’t really call him a lock for the team.

By midseason you will have a new referee to blame for your team’s woes. Funny how it is your team’s grabby DB’s who are responsible for the flood of holding flags we are witnessing already this season. I expect a whine-fest of epic proportions from clowns like you obsessed with trolling Steeler articles.

tformation says:Aug 21, 2014 1:18 PM

Ah, who cares. It’s pre-season. I have no problem with this.

Come to think of it, I don’t think I’d have a problem with a team letting their players play during the regular season after getting caught smoking weed. Even if it was Aaron Rodgers, about to play my Bears in the NFC title game.

Bell, who was also charged with DUI, has paid his own way to Philadelphia to join the team,
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cut to Bell wandering lost in the bowels of Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field yelling “HELLO CLEVELAND!”

By the way, marijuana is obviously not a performance enhancing drug. Not by a longshot. If Bell and Blount play well in beating the Eagles (not to mention the clowns and ratbirds in regular season games 1 & 2) while baked, that just means the Eagles, clowns and ratbirds suck extra bad, right?

Can I also point out that if Ray and Janay had been baked instead of drunk they’d never have been hitting each other. They’d have been eating their 3rd pizza.

cincyalldaway says:Aug 21, 2014 1:35 PM

ravanator says: Aug 21, 2014 12:43 PM

So glad the Ravens have a true #1 starting running back, the great Ray Rice. Steelers have two pot smokers that would ride the bench if they played for another team. Great time to be a Ravens fan. Cheers!
=====================================
What a moronic statement! I take someone who smokes some occassional weed over a peice of crap who slaps women around because he doesn’t have the stones to do it on the field anymore! But I guess we shouldn’t have expected anything less from the Baltimore Browns anyway.

#Rayblows

grndizzle says:Aug 21, 2014 1:39 PM

Hopefully Bell didn’t drive himself up there.

rayricespimphand says:Aug 21, 2014 1:39 PM

Should they be playing tonight? No way, no how. Sends a bad message to the rest of the team that are following the rules in place. Especially Bell for driving while smoking. That said they are both young guys doing young guys things. Live and learn, no harm was done..this time. I’m a Ravens fan and I firmly believe no suspension is necessary for the regular season as well.

It’s a pity that professional sports have become largely unwatchable thanks to these types of stories. I know times change, but I would have loved these two to time warp back to the days of Chuck Noll and like-minded coaches around the league. The police and the commissioner would be the least of their worries.
Shame that these two put themselves over the team and will remain gainfully employed.

First, a first time offender is fined 2 game checks and NOT suspended.

Second, the DUI is the more serious charge and Bell wont be suspended for that until after the trial runs its course. Jerome Simpson was just handed his suspension from a DUI last November.

Both will be docked 2 game checks and Bell will be suspended one game NEXT season.

Sorry to disappoint you.
_________________________
Steely I am SO glad you understand how the punishments of the NFL work, and what precedent is. And I am sure you were not one of those morons clamoring for Rice to get suspended for a whole season when the precedent was 1-2 games (or none, like Harrison after he cracked his baby momma, right?).

As for the suspension- you’re right. It’s not happening for Blount, and maybe next year for Bell for 1 game. BUT. What fans should be more concerned about is the program. Call me crazy, but if you get busted smoking pot once? It wasn’t a one time ordeal. You likely do it frequently. So now that these 2 will be randomly tested on a frequent basis, they need to commit to putting the doobie down for the next 2 years. If not? THEN you see suspensions coming and next thing you know? Josh Gordon style punishments. That’s where my concern would really be.

faninvirginia says:Aug 21, 2014 1:51 PM

No way Noll would have let these idiots play. Terrible message to send to the team that this is tolerated. Tomlin had an easy out by not letting them play in a game that means nothing. Also a perfect chance for the backups to get some real reps to see what you have. Often letting the backups play with the backup line doesn’t show you what you may have in a runner with other starters out there.

@Eutaws Finest correct. These things are a blip on the radar until it happens either to your favorite team or a rival or your favorite team. You wouldn’t find many Steeler or Ravens fans in the articles about Dwayne Bowe getting suspended one game because we really don’t care.

What bothers me more than anything is two fold:

a) they were scheduled to board a team plane in less than an hour meaning at the very least coaches and management would be present and

b) the Steelers have to carry an extra RB now just in case which means they have to cut someone at another position. These guys caused a young player like Josh Mauro who worked his butt off over the preseason to go to the practice squad becuase they need his roster spot for no reason.

I don’t disagree that what they did was dumb dumb dumb. But, from reading some of these comments you would think they killed a guy.

These things pass over quickly and I believe it will be put behind them and the team until the trail is concluded.

Before the first stone is cast ask yourself this. Who amongst would want to be trapped on an airplane with Tomlin and his gibberish straight? Besides the Rooneys I guess.

bobzilla1001 says:Aug 21, 2014 2:49 PM

I have rethought things. There’s no reason that both Bell and Blount shouldn’t play tonight.
But I that doesn’t change my opinion about Tomlin. His decision in 2011 to suspend Mendenhall for not showing up for a game for which he had been deactivated was ludicrous.
The only 2 people on the planet who even knew Mendenhall wasn’t at that game was Tomlin and Mendenhall. Tomlin’s intent was to publicly humiliate Mendenhall. That’s called, “`flexing your authoritative coaching muscles.”
Here’s what I think Tomlin ought to do with Bell and Blount: Take away their Ping-Pong privileges.
That’ll teach ’em.

Funny how people say…it’s only pot…it should be legal…it’s not that bad. Problem is according the CBA it is illegal for NFL players.

However, street drugs are not deemed performance enhancing so they are only tested like once a year, unless they do something stupid like drive and then get arrested. The NFL really does make an effort to leave them alone for street drugs, it’s when they drive and get caught. That’s the real problem here.

or in Aldon Smith’s case, get stopped by a tree. (before he runs over some kids on their way to school).

Another issue here is that this isn’t the “off season”; these guys are supposed to be in “training camp”. Back in Vince’s day, they would be stuck in some college dorm room if they weren’t out on the field or in the classroom. Driving around doing some J’s with some female in the car ain’t training camp.

jebdamone says:Aug 21, 2014 4:09 PM

weed brings people together.

angrypurplebirds says:Aug 21, 2014 4:17 PM

Both these guys will be cut. That’s the steeler way, right?….or so I have been hearing….

But as far as integrity, I am a little disappointed in Mike Tomlin. I always thought that he was very classy, with integrity, even taking into account running out on to the field during a kick return. Maybe I was wrong.